American Express Company Elects Sam Palmisano to Board of Directors

American Express Company (NYSE: AXP) today announced that Samuel J.
Palmisano has been elected to its board of directors.

Mr. Palmisano was chairman, president and chief executive officer of IBM
from 2003 to 2011. He was chairman of the board from January through
September 2012 and continued as senior adviser to IBM until his
retirement last December. Under his leadership, IBM achieved record
financial performance, transformed itself into a globally integrated
enterprise and introduced its Smarter Planet agenda.

Mr. Palmisano began his career with IBM in 1973 in Baltimore, Maryland.
In a 39-year career with the company, he held leadership positions that
included senior vice president and group executive of the Personal
Systems Group, senior vice president and group executive of IBM Global
Services, senior vice president and group executive of Enterprise
Systems, and president and chief operating officer.

“Sam led one of the world’s best known and most respected companies
during an unprecedented period of change and helped IBM to shape many of
the trends that are transforming the world of technology and commerce,”
said Kenneth I. Chenault, chairman and chief executive officer, American
Express. “We are very pleased to welcome a distinguished leader whose
business expertise and leadership experience will be a valuable asset to
our company and our board of directors.”

Mr. Palmisano is a member of the board of directors of Exxon Mobil
Corporation.

Mr. Palmisano is a graduate of The Johns Hopkins University. Among his
many business accomplishments, Mr. Palmisano was awarded an Honorary
Degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from Johns Hopkins University in 2012
and from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 2005. In 2006, he was
awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the London Business School. Mr.
Palmisano has received a number of business awards, including the
Atlantic Council’s Distinguished Business Leadership Award in 2009 and
the inaugural Deming Cup, presented in 2010 by the W. Edwards Deming
Center for Quality, Productivity and Competitiveness at Columbia
Business School. He is also an elected member of the American Academy of
Arts and Sciences and served as co-chair of the Council on
Competitiveness’s National Innovation Initiative.

The appointment of Mr. Palmisano to the American Express Company Board
of Directors is effective March 1, 2013.